United Kingdom: Researching Reform: Child welfare people and policies to watch in 2015
Family Law – January 05, 2015
2014 has, for family law at least, been a year of hard truths and hard knocks, affecting partners, children and practitioners alike. This sobering state of affairs is to be expected inside a sector embattled by widely-contested political reforms, and enduring an even deeper resource crisis. Challenges questioning legal aid policy and concerns over the Family Court’s future in a fast changing landscape have also made an uneven playing field foggy with procedural ambiguity.http://www.familylaw.co.uk/news_and_comment/researching-reform-child-welfare-people-and-policies-to-watch-in-2015#.VKrQNHuE03g

United Kingdom: Parents’ legal aid wait to fight enforced adoption of son inhumane, says judge
The Guardian – January 07, 2015
The child was removed from his parents nine months ago by Swindon borough council and placed in temporary foster care. But for the past 10 months, the couple have been struggling to get the legal aid without which, said Sir James Munby, president of the family division of the high court, they would be left in the “unthinkable” situation of facing the local authority’s application without proper representation.http://www.theguardian.com/law/2015/jan/07/parents-legal-aid-wait-adoption-son-inhumane

France: Increase in child abuse causes concern in France
West – Welfare Society Territory – January 06, 2015
Blows, abuses, physical and verbal aggressions on minors. A phenomenon on the rise in France, where the police have reported an increase by 43% between December 2013 and November 2014.http://www.west-info.eu/increase-in-child-abuse-causes-concern-in-france/

Guatemala: American to face trial in Guatemala adoption case
Associated Press – January 08, 2015
A Guatemalan court has ordered an American woman to stand trial on charges of participating in illegal adoptions. The prosecutors’ office for human trafficking says the court found sufficient evidence to try Nancy Susan Bailey, who is being treated for high blood pressure at a Guatemalan hospital.http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2015/jan/08/american-to-face-trial-in-guatemala-adoption-case/?ap

Guatemala: One girl’s controversial adoption, and what it says about Guatemala’s broken international adoption system (Includes audio)
Public Radio International – January 08, 2015
In each case, prospective parents paid tens of thousands of dollars in fees. All that money fueled a lucrative adoption industry in Guatemala, and an underground trade in abducted children. It got so bad that Guatemala halted all new international adoptions in 2007http://www.pri.org/stories/2015-01-08/one-girls-controversial-adoption-and-what-it-says-about-guatemalas-broken

Ireland: Prosecutions over illegal adoptions may follow investigation into mother-and-baby homes
RTE News – January 09, 2015
The commission will examine the period between 1922 and 1998 at 14 named institutions and a number of county homes. Minister for Children James Reilly said the commission may produce evidence on illegal adoptions which could warrant prosecutions.http://www.rte.ie/news/2015/0109/671337-mother-and-baby-homes/

Australia: Vulnerable children in South Australia face long-term emergency housing
Australian Associated Press – January 12, 2015
The state’s guardian for children and young people, Pam Simmons, said up to a third of these children were being kept in emergency housing for more than 18 months. She said authorities have struggled to find foster carers willing to take in large sibling groups, given an increased focus on keeping vulnerable brothers and sisters together. “To be honest, I think it’s a failure in good planning,” she told ABC radio.http://www.theguardian.com/society/2015/jan/12/vulnerable-children-in-south-australia-face-long-term-emergency-housing

Haiti: Haitian earthquake five years on: Psychological scars remain
Caribbean News Now – January 12, 2015
Five years since the earthquake hit the tiny Caribbean island nation of Haiti, many children there still have limited access to education, and some report exposure to exploitation and sexual violence after the already-fragile country descended into chaos in the aftermath of the disaster. Many Haitian children still show signs of emotional and psychological stress, and remain in desperate need of assistance and protection today.http://www.caribbeannewsnow.com/headline-Haitian-earthquake-five-years-on%3A-Psychological-scars-remain-24339.html

China: China Focus: China beefs up efforts to help underprivileged children
Xinhua via COMTEX – January 14, 2015
The plan aims at bettering development for underprivileged children in 680 impoverished counties by providing benefits from prenatal care to effective and affordable education until they finish compulsory school.http://www.shanghaidaily.com/article/article_xinhua.aspx?id=263410

International: Cambodia’s child abuse record under scrutiny in Geneva
Turkish Press – January 12, 2015
A two-day hearing to assess Cambodia’s record on preventing various forms of child abuse and the exploitation of children was launched Monday by the United Nations’ Geneva-based Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC).http://www.turkishpress.com/news/418084/

Australia: World Vision Hands the ‘Child Safe Tourism’ Baton to The Code
PRWeb – January 15, 2015
The Child Safe Tourism campaign was launched in November 2012 as part of the Project Childhood Prevention Pillar – an Australian Government initiative implemented by World Vision to prevent child sexual abuse within travel and tourism in Cambodia, Lao PDR, Thailand and Vietnam. Marc Joly, General Manager of The Code, expressed his excitement about the handover, saying, “The Code is delighted to be taking over the Child Safe Tourism campaign, and we can’t wait to take it to the next level to help us in our mission to promote child protection in travel and tourism.”http://quotes.stocknod.com/stocknod/news/read?GUID=29070455

Nigeria: Lawyers seek end to child abuse
News 24 Nigeria – January 19, 2015
Two Lagos-based lawyers, Messrs Fatai Adeniji and Ola Ogunbiyi, on Sunday called for adequate punishment for child abuse in Nigeria. The lawyers urged relevant agencies of government to strictly enforce laws against child abuse to check the vice.http://www.news24.com.ng/National/News/Lawyers-seek-end-to-child-abuse-20150119

Spain: Deaf couple win right to adopt child who can hear
West – January 16, 2015
An unprecedented ruling from an appeal court in Spain has found in favour of a deaf couple who want to adopt a child with full hearing. The aspiring parents filed their case when their local social services said they could only adopt children with the same disability as them.http://www.west-info.eu/deaf-couple-win-right-to-adopt-child-who-can-hear/

United Kingdom: Schools suspend hundreds of staff amid child protection guidance confusion | Education
The Guardian – January 20, 2015
Schoolchildren in England are facing disruption because hundreds of staff are being suspended as a result of revised child protection guidance from the government. More than 300 school staff – including teachers – are thought to have been suspended, according to the public sector union Unison, after they complied with government requirements that they should disclose if they are living with someone with a conviction for a violent or sexual crime.http://dailyme.com/story/2015012000003857

US: Un-Adopting: Is Divorcing Children an Acceptable Option?
Huffington Post – January 21, 2015
The one difference is that adopted children displaying these behaviors are labeled “defiant” and diagnosed with Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD) and also with Reactive Attachment Disorder (RAD), a specifically adoption-related “disorder” that pinpoints the problem as the child’s inability to “bond” with a new family, and which has been called a “catch-all, garbage diagnoses.”http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mirah-riben/unadopting-is-divorcing-c_b_6504404.html

US: Living With Adoption’s Dichotomies and Myths
Huffington Post – January 20, 2015
Imagine sharing your feelings of missing your deceased father (or brother) and hearing: “Be glad you still have your mother (or sister)” as if your loved ones are interchangeable. Such a response would be off target, dismissive, and totally lacking in compassion. Yet it seems acceptable, or at least commonplace, to tell adoptees who courageously share the difficult aspects and challenges of living life adopted that they should be “grateful” because they were “chosen” and are “better off.”http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mirah-riben/living-with-adoptions-com_b_6504642.html

US: ‘Dual-Status’ Youths: Broken Kids, Broken System (Opinion)
Acton Institute – January 19, 2015
One of the biggest problems for these kids are that the adults in their lives who are most positively involved – social workers and probation officers – rarely, if ever, communicated. Even more concerning, probation officers are only involved if and when a child has trouble with the law, and a probation officer’s main concern is to make sure the child doesn’t end up in trouble again ? but not necessarily fixing the issue that landed the child in trouble in the first place.http://blog.acton.org/archives/75316-dual-status-youths-broken-kids-broken-system.html

United Kingdom: Schools suspend hundreds of staff amid child protection guidance confusion | Education
The Guardian – January 20, 2015
Schoolchildren in England are facing disruption because hundreds of staff are being suspended as a result of revised child protection guidance from the government. More than 300 school staff – including teachers – are thought to have been suspended, according to the public sector union Unison, after they complied with government requirements that they should disclose if they are living with someone with a conviction for a violent or sexual crime.http://dailyme.com/story/2015012000003857

Canada: Official in Makayla Sault case says laws on child protection and medical consent are conflicting
National Post – January 21, 2015
Ontario’s child welfare agencies are torn between conflicting laws on how to protect children who refuse chemotherapy in favour of traditional indigenous medicine, according to the head of the agency that oversaw the cases of Makayla Sault and a second aboriginal girl in an almost identical predicament.http://www.bignewsnetwork.com/index.php/sid/229582507

Philippines: An emotional meeting…
Gulf Daily News – January 22, 2015
Pope Francis’s last full day in the Philippines earlier this week, began with an emotional youth gathering at a Catholic university in Manila, where he was moved by a question posed by a 12-year-old girl who had been abandoned. ‘Many children are abandoned by their parents. Many of them became victims and bad things have happened to them, like drug addiction and prostitution. Why does God allow this to happen, even if the children are not at fault? Why is it that only a few people help us?’ Glyzelle Iris Palomar asked.http://www.gulf-daily-news.com/NewsDetails.aspx?storyid=394408

Slovakia: Referendum leader talks vote
The Slovak Spectator – January 21, 2015
The grassroots Alliance for Family (AZR) collected more than 400,000 signatures to put ballot questions that could ultimately amend the constitution to tighten the definition of family and ban same sex couples from adopting children. The Slovak Spectator sat down with one of AZR’s key organisers, Anton Chromík, in his law office to talk about the ballot initiative.http://spectator.sme.sk/articles/view/56518/2/referendum_leader_talks_vote.html

Canada: Official in Makayla Sault case says laws on child protection and medical consent are conflicting
National Post – January 21, 2015
Ontario’s child welfare agencies are torn between conflicting laws on how to protect children who refuse chemotherapy in favour of traditional indigenous medicine, according to the head of the agency that oversaw the cases of Makayla Sault and a second aboriginal girl in an almost identical predicament.http://www.bignewsnetwork.com/index.php/sid/229582507

Philippines: An emotional meeting…
Gulf Daily News – January 22, 2015
Pope Francis’s last full day in the Philippines earlier this week, began with an emotional youth gathering at a Catholic university in Manila, where he was moved by a question posed by a 12-year-old girl who had been abandoned. ‘Many children are abandoned by their parents. Many of them became victims and bad things have happened to them, like drug addiction and prostitution. Why does God allow this to happen, even if the children are not at fault? Why is it that only a few people help us?’ Glyzelle Iris Palomar asked.http://www.gulf-daily-news.com/NewsDetails.aspx?storyid=394408

Slovakia: Referendum leader talks vote
The Slovak Spectator – January 21, 2015
The grassroots Alliance for Family (AZR) collected more than 400,000 signatures to put ballot questions that could ultimately amend the constitution to tighten the definition of family and ban same sex couples from adopting children. The Slovak Spectator sat down with one of AZR’s key organisers, Anton Chromík, in his law office to talk about the ballot initiative.http://spectator.sme.sk/articles/view/56518/2/referendum_leader_talks_vote.html

US: One Couple’s Unanticipated Journey to Center of Landmark Gay Rights Case
New York Times – January 24, 2015
After talking to a lawyer in Detroit, Ms. Rowse and Ms. DeBoer were stunned to discover that, as a gay couple living in Michigan, they were unprotected under the law: Michigan does not allow two unmarried people to jointly adopt a child, so their children were technically adopted by a single parent, either Ms. Rowse, 50, or Ms. DeBoer, 43. Each parent legally had no claim to the children her partner had legally adopted.http://www.nytimes.com/2015/01/25/us/one-couples-unanticipated-journey-to-center-of-landmark-gay-rights-case.html?_r=0

US: Christine Korenthal: Parenting by law: a bad idea for society (Opinion)
Santa Clarita Valley Signal – January 23, 2015
A poll conducted in August showed that 82 percent of Americans believe it should be against the law for any child under the age of 9 to be allowed to play outside without supervision, and 63 percent think that even 12 years old is too young to be unsupervised. I found this poll deeply unsettling.http://www.signalscv.com/section/33/article/132063/

Australia: Too many kids in care, says peak body
Westender – January 26, 2015
The number of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children in state care has reached the highest level ever recorded in Queensland and all parties need to commit to reducing this says the Queensland Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Child Protection Peak Body.http://westender.com.au/many-kids-care-says-peak-body/

New Zealand: New Zealand Child Abuse Cases Down by 12 Percent
International Business Times – January 24, 2015
Cases of child abuse in New Zealand have shown a marked decline. According to the latest statistics on child abuse, the number of children abused in New Zealand in the year ended in June 2014 has come down by 2,306 or 12 percent compared to the figures of year 2013.http://au.ibtimes.com/new-zealand-child-abuse-cases-down-12-percent-1414820

Sweden: Zero gay adoptions in Sweden
QX – January 26, 2015
If you’re gay and aspire to become a parent in Sweden the future looks pretty bleak. For over ten years it has been legal for gay couples to adopt children in Sweden, yet no international gay adoptions have ever been made, QX ask the question: why?http://www.qx.se/english/28081/zero-gay-adoptions-in-swedenUS: Sex traffickers are among ICE’s most wanted
USA Today – January 27, 2015
The issue isn’t limited to foreigners brought to the United States. Polaris, an advocacy group that works to end human trafficking, says that of the 3,840 cases reported through their hotline last year, almost 1,500 involved victims who are American citizens. Many are young teens who are in foster care, have run away or live in troubled homes.http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2015/01/27/human-trafficking-most-wanted-fugitives/22358301/

US: A New Organization and a New Focus: Enabling Children and Families to Succeed (Opinion)
Huffington Post – January 26, 2015
The National Center on Adoption and Permanency (NCAP); Our mission is to move policy and practice in the U.S. beyond their current concentration on child placement to a model in which enabling families of all kinds to succeed — through education, training and support services — becomes the bottom-line objective.http://www.huffingtonpost.com/adam-pertman/a-new-organization-and-a-new-focus_b_6543152.html

US: When Kids Are Sold For Sex –They’re Not ‘Child Prostitutes,’ They’re Victims (Opinion)
Huffington Post – January 26, 2015
According to federal law, any individual under 18 who performs a commercial sex act in exchange for compensation is by definition a victim of sex trafficking, not a prostitute. Yet, these young victims are labeled as “child prostitutes” in the media and are often treated as criminals before the law.http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/01/26/sex-trafficking-children_n_6547668.html

US: CDC: low awareness among women of birth defect risk from opioids
Medical News Today – January 23, 2015
“Taking opioid medications early in pregnancy can cause birth defects and serious problems for the infant and the mother,” says CDC Director Tom Frieden. “Many women of reproductive age are taking these medicines and may not know they are pregnant and therefore may be unknowingly exposing their unborn child. That’s why it’s critical for health care professionals to take a thorough health assessment before prescribing these medicines to women of reproductive age.”http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/288457.php?tw

US: 3 Black Adoptees Speak Out About Life With White Parents
The Root – January 27, 2015
The Root talked to three transracial adoptees, all adopted by white families in the 1970s, about their experiences and views on transracial adoption, as well as Costner’s new film. While all three appreciated the love and foundation their families provided, a common theme evolved: In a racially polarized society, children of color cannot be raised devoid of their history and culture.http://www.theroot.com/articles/culture/2015/01/_3_black_adoptees_speak_about_growing_up_with_white_parents.html

US: Violence intervention programs ‘could save hospitals millions’
Medical News Today – January 27, 2015
Researchers from Drexel University have analyzed the cost-benefit ratio of hospital-based violence intervention programs (HVIPs) and report that – as well as benefiting victims’ lives – HVIPs can make costs savings of up to $4 million over a 5-year period in the health care and criminal justice sectors.http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/288572.php?tw

INTERNATIONAL

Australia: Child trafficking opponents criticise Federal Government’s decision to lift series of overseas adoption bans
South East Asia – January 27, 2015
Opponents of child trafficking have criticised the Federal Government’s decision to lift a series of bans on foreign adoptions, saying Australians should stay out of overseas arrangements.http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-01-28/calls-for-end-to-overseas-adoption/6051990

Korea: Birth mothers living in silence
Korea Herald – January 28, 2015
“When you get pregnant as an unmarried woman, you have to marry the father of your baby. Other options were unthinkable.” But nothing was worse than learning that her family members secretly sent her 11-month-old son for adoption to give Noh an “easier life.”http://www.koreaherald.com/view.php?ud=20150128001276

United Kingdom: Mother’s stress hormone levels may affect fetal growth and long term health of child
Science Daily – January 26, 2015
The foetuses of the mice with raised levels of the stress hormone tended to be smaller, despite the mother overeating, suggesting that a mother’s stress levels may affect her child’s growth.http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/01/150126095717.htm

US: Do You Need Good Credit to Adopt a Child?
Nerdwallet – January 29, 2015
“Adoption agencies look at financial information” – in a general sense – to make sure the prospective parents are “financially stable,” explains Tomasa Duenas, an adoptive parent and intake counselor at the Independent Adoption Center in Concord, California.http://www.nerdwallet.com/blog/tips/good-credit-adopt-child/

US: The Aftereffects of Childhood Sexual Abuse (Opinion)
Psych Central – January 29, 2015
Our refusal to acknowledge the huge numbers of one in four girls and one in six boys being sexually assaulted translates into a failure to provide the healing help those victims need. If the victims don’t exist they don’t need resources to help them recover, right?http://blogs.psychcentral.com/sex-abuse/